Monday, February 9, 2009

25 - Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing; Mignon Fogarty

What a great little (224 pp) gem of a book this is. There is even a Grammar Girl Website , which is pretty cool as well.

About the book....

Are you stumped by split infinitives? Terrified of using “who” when a “whom” is called for? Do you avoid the words “lay” and “lie” altogether?

Grammar Girl is here to help!

Mignon Fogarty, a.k.a. Grammar Girl, is determined to wipe out bad grammar—but she’s also determined to make the process as painless as possible. One year ago, she created a weekly podcast to tackle some of the most common mistakes people make while communicating. The podcasts have now been downloaded more than seven million times, and Mignon has dispensed grammar tips on Oprah and appeared on the pages of The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and USA Today.

Here are a few common errors I found interesting:

  • (p.77) Don't start a sentence with the word: Hopefully.
  • For example: Hopefully, it won't rain. According to this book, "For some reason too many language sticklers say starting a sentence with Hopefully has become a mark of ignorance." GUILTY-- Shame on Me.
  • (p.83) Don't start a sentence with: However, Hopefully, A Conjunction, Because, or a number.
  • (p. 22) Confusion when using ie: and eg
  • ie: means in other words ; eg: means for example - it is not either or.
  • (p.47) Confusion with the words Lay versus Lie
  • Lay - putting down an object - "lay down a pencil"
  • Lie - to recline
Note: Eric Clapton's song "Lay Down Sally" is grammatically incorrect. It should be "Lie Down Sally". Thought that was pretty funny.

I recommend this book to everyone.

RATING - 5/5 - COMPLETED - 2/9/09
WHERE FROM: Library
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6 comments:

  1. caiteFebruary 9, 2009 at 9:18 PM

    I have never read the book, but I love the Grammar Girl Tip of the Day! Having it e-mailed to me and reading it makes me very humble. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Happy ReaderFebruary 10, 2009 at 2:33 AM

    I would love to read this book! Looks like I could learn a thing or two from it :) Thanks for your review..

    ReplyDelete
  3. UnknownFebruary 10, 2009 at 7:37 AM

    I like funny books about grammar. It's sooo much easier to absorb or refresh the rules.

    ReplyDelete
  4. LisaFebruary 10, 2009 at 11:16 AM

    I love books like this. I can always use the help. This one sounds like fun. I'm going to check out the website, too.

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousFebruary 10, 2009 at 5:57 PM

    What a seriously cool book! I could always use a book like this...lol!

    ReplyDelete
  6. MelissaFebruary 12, 2009 at 11:14 AM

    I have to get this book! I need all the help I can get. :)

    And now I have to track down the Grammar Girl Tip of the Day.

    ReplyDelete

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